ORCID Profile
0000-0002-6037-2565
Current Organisation
Murdoch University
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Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 02-01-2021
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.1017/S1463423622000020
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to describe the implementation and evaluation of the Growing Strong Brains® (GSB) toolkit in a remote Aboriginal community in Western Australia (WA) over a 2-year period, 2018–2019. Ngala, a community service organisation in WA, developed the GSB toolkit in 2014, a culturally appropriate and interactive resource to build knowledge of early childhood development within Aboriginal communities. This was in response to evidence that a higher percentage of children in Aboriginal communities were developmentally vulnerable compared to the rest of the population. The GSB toolkit promotes awareness and understanding of early brain development pre-birth and in the early years of a child’s life. The project was underpinned by participatory action research (PAR). Reflective PAR review cycles ( n = 5) monitored local community engagement, navigated challenges and utilised community strengths. Fifty-nine local service providers attended a 2-day formal training. Data were collected by using various methods throughout the project, including feedback following training, focus groups, surveys, one-on-one interviews using yarning techniques and reflective feedback from the Project Lead. Establishing local Aboriginal project staff was pivotal to the success of the project. When delivering services for and with Aboriginal people, it is essential that cultural competence, safety and decision-making is carried through from planning to implementation and evaluation, and involves genuine, respectful and authentic relationships. Sufficient time allocation directed towards building relationships with other service providers and local community members needs to be considered and built into future projects. The Growing Strong Brains ® project is embedded within the local community, and anticipated implementation outcomes were achieved. The support of the local people and service providers was beyond expectation, enabling the building of local capacity, and the development of a common understanding of the key messages from the GSB toolkit to allow integration throughout all levels of the community. This project has been important to build on the strategies necessary to introduce, implement and evaluate the GSB toolkit in other remote Aboriginal communities.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 06-07-2023
DOI: 10.2196/45983
Abstract: Nutrition in pregnancy is pivotal to optimizing infant growth and maternal well-being. The factors affecting Indigenous people’s food and nutrition intake are complex with a history of colonization impacting the disproportionate effect of social determinants to this day. Literature regarding the dietary intake or dietary priorities of Indigenous women in Australia is scarce, with supportive, culturally appropriate resources developed for and with this group rare. Research suggests mobile health (mHealth) tools are effective in supporting health knowledge of Indigenous people and positive health behavior changes when designed and developed with the expertise of Indigenous communities. This study seeks to build the body of knowledge related to nutrition needs and priorities for Indigenous women in Australia during pregnancy. Further, this project team and its participants will co-design an mHealth digital tool to support these nutrition needs. The Mums and Bubs Deadly Diets study recruits Indigenous women and health care professionals who support Indigenous women during pregnancy into 2 phases. Phase 1 (predesign) uses a mixed methods convergent design using a biographical questionnaire and social or focus groups to inform phase 2 (generative). Phase 2 will use a participatory action research process during co-design workshops to iteratively develop the digital tool the exact actions within a workshop will evolve according to the participant group decisions. To date, this project has undertaken phase 1 focus groups at all Queensland sites, with New South Wales and Western Australia to begin in early to mid-2023. We have recruited 12 participants from Galangoor Duwalami, 18 participants from Carbal in Toowoomba, and 18 participants from Carbal in Warwick. We are expecting similar numbers of recruits in Western Australia and New South Wales. Participants have been both community members and health care professionals. This study is an iterative and adaptive research program that endeavors to develop real-world, impactful resources to support the nutrition needs and priorities of pregnant Indigenous women in Australia. This comprehensive project requires a combination of methods and methodologies to ensure Indigenous voices are heard at each stage and in all aspects of research output. The development of an mHealth resource for this cohort will provide a necessary bridge where there is often a gap in access to nutrition resources for women in pregnancy in Indigenous communities. DERR1-10.2196/45983
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-01-2022
DOI: 10.1002/AJS4.200
Abstract: Reducing the rate of over‐representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out‐of‐home care (OOHC) is a key Closing the Gap target committed to by all Australian governments. Current strategies are failing. The “gap” is widening, with the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in OOHC at 30 June 2020 being 11 times that of non‐Indigenous children. Approximately, one in five Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children entering OOHC each year are younger than one year. These figures represent compounding intergenerational trauma and institutional harm to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities. This article outlines systemic failures to address the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander parents during pregnancy and following birth, causing cumulative harm and trauma to families, communities and cultures. Major reform to child and family notification and service systems, and significant investment to address this crisis, is urgently needed. The Family Matters Building Blocks and five elements of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle (Prevention, Participation, Partnership, Placement and Connection) provide a transformative foundation to address historical, institutional, well‐being and socioeconomic drivers of current catastrophic trajectories. The time for action is now.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-11-2023
DOI: 10.1111/PPE.12929
Abstract: Having a preterm ( weeks' gestation) birth may increase a woman's risk of early mortality. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (hereafter Aboriginal) women have higher preterm birth and mortality rates compared with other Australian women. We investigated whether a history of having a preterm birth was associated with early mortality in women and whether these associations differed by Aboriginal status. This retrospective cohort study used population‐based perinatal records of women who had a singleton birth between 1980 and 2015 in Western Australia linked to Death Registry data until June 2018. The primary and secondary outcomes were all‐cause and cause‐specific mortality respectively. After stratification by Aboriginal status, rate differences were calculated, and Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for all‐cause and cause‐specific mortality. There were 20,244 Aboriginal mothers (1349 deaths) and 457,357 non‐Aboriginal mothers (7646 deaths) with 8.6 million person‐years of follow‐up. The all‐cause mortality rates for Aboriginal mothers who had preterm births and term births were 529.5 and 344.0 (rate difference 185.5, 95% CI 135.5, 238.5) per 100,000 person‐years respectively. Among non‐Aboriginal mothers, the corresponding figures were 125.5 and 88.6 (rate difference 37.0, 95% CI 29.4, 44.9) per 100,000 person‐years. The HR for all‐cause mortality for Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal mothers associated with preterm birth were 1.48 (95% CI 1.32, 1.66) and 1.35 (95% CI 1.26, 1.44), respectively, compared with term birth. Compared with mothers who had term births, mothers of preterm births had higher relative risks of mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular, digestive and external causes. Both Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal women who had a preterm birth had a moderately increased risk of mortality up to 38 years after the birth, reinforcing the importance of primary prevention and ongoing screening.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.1017/S1463423621000384
Abstract: This article documents the impact of a Nurse Practitioner-led primary health service for disadvantaged children living in housing instability or homelessness. It identifies that First Nations children miss out on essential primary care, particularly immunisation, but have less severe health conditions than non-First Nations children living in housing insecurity. Health services for homeless populations focus on the 11% of rough sleepers, little is done for the 22% of children in Australia living in housing instability many of whom are from First Nations families. Little is known of the health status of these children or their connections to appropriate primary health care. This research implemented an innovative model of extended health care delivery, embedding a Nurse Practitioner in a homeless service to work with families providing health assessments and referrals, using clinically validated assessment tools. This article reports on proof of concept findings on the service that measured immunisation rates, developmental, medical, dental and mental health needs of children, particularly First Nations children, using a three-point severity level scale with Level 3 being the most severe and in need of immediate referral to a specialist medical service. Forty-three children were referred by the service to the Nurse Practitioner over a 6-month period, with nine identifying as First Nations children. Differences in severity levels between First Nations/non-First Nations children were Level 1, First Nations/non-First Nations 0/15% Level 2, 10/17% and Level 3, 45/29%. Forty-five percent of First Nations children had no health problems, as compared to 29% on non-First Nations children. Immunisation rates were low for both cohorts. No First Nations child was immunised and only 9% of the non-First Nations children. While numbers for both cohorts are too low for valid statistical analysis, the lower levels of severity for First Nations children suggest stronger extended family support and the positive impact of cultural norms of reciprocity.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 07-02-2023
Abstract: utrition in pregnancy is pivotal to optimizing infant growth and maternal well-being. The factors affecting Indigenous people’s food and nutrition intake are complex with a history of colonization impacting the disproportionate effect of social determinants to this day. Literature regarding the dietary intake or dietary priorities of Indigenous women in Australia is scarce, with supportive, culturally appropriate resources developed for and with this group rare. Research suggests mobile health (mHealth) tools are effective in supporting health knowledge of Indigenous people and positive health behavior changes when designed and developed with the expertise of Indigenous communities. his study seeks to build the body of knowledge related to nutrition needs and priorities for Indigenous women in Australia during pregnancy. Further, this project team and its participants will co-design an mHealth digital tool to support these nutrition needs. he Mums and Bubs Deadly Diets study recruits Indigenous women and health care professionals who support Indigenous women during pregnancy into 2 phases. Phase 1 (predesign) uses a mixed methods convergent design using a biographical questionnaire and social or focus groups to inform phase 2 (generative). Phase 2 will use a participatory action research process during co-design workshops to iteratively develop the digital tool the exact actions within a workshop will evolve according to the participant group decisions. o date, this project has undertaken phase 1 focus groups at all Queensland sites, with New South Wales and Western Australia to begin in early to mid-2023. We have recruited 12 participants from Galangoor Duwalami, 18 participants from Carbal in Toowoomba, and 18 participants from Carbal in Warwick. We are expecting similar numbers of recruits in Western Australia and New South Wales. Participants have been both community members and health care professionals. his study is an iterative and adaptive research program that endeavors to develop real-world, impactful resources to support the nutrition needs and priorities of pregnant Indigenous women in Australia. This comprehensive project requires a combination of methods and methodologies to ensure Indigenous voices are heard at each stage and in all aspects of research output. The development of an mHealth resource for this cohort will provide a necessary bridge where there is often a gap in access to nutrition resources for women in pregnancy in Indigenous communities. ERR1-10.2196/45983
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 06-2021
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-046078
Abstract: Self-regulation is a modifiable protective factor for lifespan mental and physical health outcomes. Early caregiver-mediated interventions to promote infant and child regulatory outcomes prevent long-term developmental, emotional and behavioural difficulties and improve outcomes such as school readiness, educational achievement and economic success. To harness the population health promise of these programmes, there is a need for more nuanced understanding of the impact of these interventions. The aim of this realist review is to understand how, why, under which circumstances and for whom, early caregiver-mediated interventions improve infant and child self-regulation. The research questions guiding this review were based on consultation with families and community organisations that provide early childhood and family services. Realist reviews take a theory-driven and iterative approach to evidence synthesis, structured around continuous refinement of a programme theory. Programme theories specify context-mechanism-outcome configurations to explain what works, for whom, under which circumstances and how. Our initial programme theory is based on prior work in this field and will be refined through the review process. A working group, comprising service users, community organisation representatives, representatives from specific populations, clinicians and review team members will guide the evidence synthesis and interpretation, as well as the development and dissemination of recommendations based on the findings of the review. The review will involve searching: (i) electronic databases, (ii) connected papers, articles and citations and (iii) grey literature. Decisions to include evidence will be guided by judgements about their contribution to the programme theory and will be made by the research team, with input from the working group. Evidence synthesis will be reported using the Realist and MEta-narrative Evidence Synthesis: Evolving Standards guidelines. Ethical approval is not required as this is a review. Findings will be disseminated to our working group and through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. The protocol is registered with Open Science Framework osf.io/5ce2z/registrations .
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 14-10-2020
DOI: 10.1101/2020.10.12.20211300
Abstract: Self-regulation is a modifiable protective factor for lifespan mental and physical health outcomes. Early caregiver-mediated interventions to promote infant and child regulatory outcomes prevent long-term developmental, emotional, and behavioural difficulties and improve outcomes such as school readiness, educational achievement, and economic success. To harness the population health promise of these programmes, there is a need for more nuanced understanding of the impact of these interventions. The aim of this realist review is to understand how, why, under which circumstances, and for whom, early caregiver-mediated interventions improve infant and child self-regulation. The specific research questions guiding this review were based on consultation with families and community organizations that provide early childhood and family services. Realist reviews take a theory-driven and iterative approach to evidence synthesis, structured around continuous refinement of a programme theory. Programme theories specify context-mechanism-outcome configurations to explain what works, for whom, under which circumstances, and how. Our initial programme theory is based on prior work in this field and will be refined through searching peer-reviewed and grey literature to identify relevant evidence. A working group, comprising service users, community organization representatives, representatives from specific populations, clinicians, and review team members will be formed to guide the evidence synthesis and interpretation, as well as the development and dissemination of recommendations based on the findings of the review. The review will involve searching: (1) electronic databases (e.g. EMBASE, Medline, PsycInfo), (2) connected papers, articles and citations, and (3) grey literature. Decisions to include evidence will be guided by judgements about their contribution to the programme theory and will be made by the research team, with input from the working group as required. Evidence synthesis will be reported using the RAMESES guidelines and disseminated through peer-reviewed publication. The protocol is registered with Open Science Framework osf.io/5ce2z/registrations Uses a realist approach to provide insight into what works, for whom, under which circumstances, and how for caregiver-mediated interventions designed to promote self-regulation outcomes among infants and young children. Research questions were developed in consultation with families and service providers. Decision-making will be transparently documented, and all review materials made available on the Open Science Framework repository. The programme theory will be largely derived from peer-reviewed journal articles, and therefore may be subject to publication bias.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1017/S1463423623000373
Abstract: To critically appraise the literature to determine availability and identify the cultural responsiveness of infant resuscitation education for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. Despite overall reductions in infant mortality in the last two decades, Aboriginal people have some of the highest rates of infant mortality of any developed nation. One of the key factors that has attributed to improvements in infant mortality rates is parent and carer education around risk factors and actions of first responders. Identifying gaps in the current basic first-aid initiatives available to Aboriginal communities may contribute to developing resources to contribute to reductions in Aboriginal neonatal mortality rates. The review used key terms and Boolean operators across an 11-month time frame searching for research articles utilising the databases of CINAHL, Scopus, Ovid Emcare, Informit, Pubmed and Proquest. After review, 39 articles met the inclusion criteria, 25 articles were discarded due to irrelevant material and 14 articles were included in the structured literature review. The search process was developed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines. Articles were assessed for validity and inclusion using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program checklist. Research literature relating to First Nation community-based CPR and first-aid education programmes in Canada, USA, India, UK and Europe, Asia and Africa were identified however, none pertaining specifically to CPR and first-aid education in Australian Aboriginal communities were found. Despite the lack of research evidence relating to infant cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) education for Australian Aboriginal populations, the reviewed studies noted the importance of culturally responsive education designed in collaboration with First Nation peoples, using novel ways of teaching CPR, that align with the language, culture and needs of the communities it is intended for. Further research is required to create a framework for the delivery of culturally responsive infant resuscitation education for Australian Aboriginal parents and communities.
No related grants have been discovered for Rhonda Marriott.